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World Grand Prix Darts: All You Need to Know

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The annual 18th World Grand Prix Darts kicks off in Dublin as usual on Sunday night, featuring 32 of the world's best players battling it out over a prize fund of £400,000, with this year's winner set to take home a cool £100,000. Not bad work if you can get it.

WRITTEN BY SEAN BROWN

The annual 18th World Grand Prix Darts kicks off in Dublin as usual on Sunday night, featuring 32 of the world's best players battling it out over a prize fund of £400,000, with this year's winner set to take home a cool £100,000. Not bad work if you can get it. Unlike the other darts tournaments on the calendar—T20 x7, T19 and D12 for the elusive nine—the awaited return of the Grand Prix also sees the return of its unique double-start format. In this format, for a nine-darter you take the preferred route of D20, T20 x6, T19 and Bull. World No.1 and defending Champion Michael Van Gerwen leads the names and seeds going into the tournament, while 11-time winner Phil Taylor will seek to sound an ominous warning as he looks to supplant Van Gerwen as the World's No.1. As befitting of the modern darts scene, the contest has a distinctly international flavour with competitors drawn across Great Britain and Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Australia and Spain. Of the more local challengers, Steven Bunting's looking to build on his semi-final exit at the hands of the ebullient Van Gerwen last year with a tilt of the title. Adrian Lewis, Simon Whitlock and last year's finalist James Wade are also high up on the roll of merit and fancying their chances in the Irish capital. Raymond van Barneveld is always a character who sticks out for spectators and opponents alike at these meets, and although he's not the serial winner he once was, the Dutchman still has plenty to test his fellow entrants. Van Gerwen's the odds-on favorite however, with Taylor and newly-crowned World No.2 Gary Anderson his prominent challengers.

With 'The Green Machine' and the Scot separated in the draw as the top two seeds, the World Grand Prix Darts is all set for a climatic and memorable finish between the world's greatest darts players. Here's all you need to know about the World Grand Prix Darts, commencing from Dublin on October 4. 1. Round One Draw Looking Tasty If past World Grand Prix tournaments have taught us anything, it's to expect the unexpected in the opening rounds. In the short format that kicks the action off, coming out of the blocks slowly can cost you dearly—just take Taylor in 2012 for example. "The Power" entered his second-round bout versus Robert Thornton expecting to breeze through, but the Scot produced magic darts to send the 16-time World Champion home early. Taylor will be looking to avoid a similar start this time around in Dublin, but faces a tough task against dangerous Vincent Van der Voort. World No.1 Michael Van Gerwen also begins with a potential banana-skin tie, as he takes on prospect Keegan Brown. Adrian Lewis battles Raymond Van Barneveld in arguably the 2015 World Grand Prix's most tasty first round tie. Here's a look at the full first-round draw: Van Gerwen v Brown G Anderson v Henderson Taylor v Van der Voort A Lewis v Van Barneveld Chisnall v Wright Suljovic v Wade J Lewis v O'Connor King v Jenkins Thornton v Gurney Dolan v Klaasen Pipe v Beaton Whitlock v Gilding M Smith v Price K Huybrechts v van de Pas M Webster v Bunting White v Caven John Henderson comes into the World Grand Prix most years with an air of expectancy around the Englishman, but it never seems to materialize. He hasn't been handed any favors on his bid to reverse his fortunes, either, as he takes on World Champion Gary Anderson. Elsewhere, the Mr. Inconsistent of Darts Peter Wright starts his World Grand Prix against red-hot Dave Chisnall, but televised events do tend to bring the best out in Snakebite. Should Wright find a way past Chisnall, he'll find himself up against either Brendan Dolan or Jelle Klaasen—so the path to the quarter-finals is relatively easy for the 45-year-old. Wright reached the semi-final of the World Matchplay last time out, ultimately losing to his arch-nemesis Michael Van Gerwen, but the Scot has never won a major/televised PDC tournament up to this point. No better time, then, for Wright to put it right.

The World Grand Prix is a major that seems to bring the best out of everyone—from the 32 competitors to the thousands of spectators—and 2015's installment looks like being no different. Taylor, Van Gerwen, Anderson and Wright and Co. all have points to prove in Dublin, but it takes more than just a household name to reap success on the Citywest stage. 2. Players to Look Out For Michael Van Gerwen An obvious favorite, Michael Van Gerwen enjoyed his first relish of World Matchplay glory back in July. He overcame James Wade in the final—dismantling "The Machine"—having seen off Wright, White and Jamie Lewis (averaged 113 against Lewis) in previous rounds. Van Gerwen will look to open his World Grand Prix account with victory over English prospect Keegan Brown in Dublin but, as recent tournaments have taught us, Van Gerwen doesn't come out firing on all cylinders in the opening round of fixtures. It's not like he's playing an amateur, either—Keegan Brown has pushed players like Chisnall and, even Van Gerwen, to the limit before. That means he'll pose a dangerous threat, but Van Gerwen should comfortably hold off the challenge of the Englishman. "Mighty Mike" overcame his Matchplay final opponent James Wade in 2014's installment, and he will likely be in the mix come the latter stages of the tournament. Van Gerwen, as World No.1 and in his current form, is no doubt the man to beat and other players will raise their game when they face the Netherlands international. But he has shown in the past that he has what it takes to win at the highest level. Gary Anderson Coming into this tournament last year, current World Champion Gary Anderson was 6th in the PDC Order Of Merit, perceived as an outsider. How times have changed. On the way to his Alexandra Palace triumph in January—Anderson dismantled Van Gerwen and Peter Wright before he overcame Taylor in a classic and neck-and-neck final.

Anderson has the ability and high-scoring flamboyance to beat any player in this Grand Prix, he simply has to produce the necessary consistency to prevail over this unique double-start format. He has proven he can produce such consistency over the last year—indeed, he reached the semi-final in the 2014 installment of this competition—and will prove a hugely challenging opponent throughout this year's tournament. Dave Chisnall Something of an outsider ahead of the start of the World Grand Prix in Dublin, Chisnall's remarkable performance in defeat to aforementioned Gary Anderson at the 2015 Premier League is an indication of his incredible quality. In a phenomenal semi-final in London's O2, the Englishman pushed Anderson all the way to a decider, eventually losing 10-9.

However, he produced some stunning darts, averaging over 101 and throwing 7 maximums in the contest. That is some heaving scoring and shows that Chisnall has just enough quality to bring the biggest names in the sport to the very distance. Victory against World No.4 Wright in his first-round tie would give the Liverpudlian terrific momentum and Chisnall could go the distance this year.

TheSportMatrix | We Live For Sport: World Grand Prix Darts: All You Need to Know

World Grand Prix Darts: All You Need to Know

The annual 18th World Grand Prix Darts kicks off in Dublin as usual on Sunday night, featuring 32 of the world's best players battling it out over a prize fund of £400,000, with this year's winner set to take home a cool £100,000. Not bad work if you can get it.